Stars
by soumanyon
Summary: What if it was possible for Bou to give up his immortality and be a normal human again? Based on an ancient Chinese myth. BouFugen
1. Blinded

Disclaimer: Senkaiden Houshi Engi is NOT mine. It belongs to Fujisaki-san and it's original Chinese author and whoever else has claim to it. ADV, I think licensed it? Oh, and of course J Shanon Weaver for doing an awesome job on dubbing Taikoubou!! So of course that means he has claim to it. ^_^;  
  
an: My first try at a HE fic so I apologize beforehand! Any mistakes, please point them out to me and I'll be forever grateful. And be sure to let me know what you thought!  
  
~*~  
  
Chapter 1: Blinded  
  
~*~  
  
It was late.  
  
It was a moonless night. The sky was an endlessly dark background for thousands of tiny sparkling stars. The shrill call of summer crickets sounded from all around the campfire, interrupted only by soft, deep breathing.  
  
Taikoubou was lying on his back with his hands behind his head, cushioning it. His strange hat was on top of a pile of his clothes to the side and all he wore were his white pants, leaving him bare-chested as he stared up at the starry sky above him.  
  
"It's beautiful, isn't it, Fugen?" he murmured quietly, careful not to break the peace of the beautiful night.  
  
The angelic sennin who had just appeared simply smiled his peaceful smile,  
  
"Yes it is, Bou-chan."  
  
They had a special bond, the two of them.  
  
Sitting down on the lush grass next to Taikoubou, Fugen rested his paopei in his lap as he tilted his head up to look. But even the faint glow from the halo over his head emitted enough light so that the stars were blinded from him.  
  
His smile faded a little at not being able to see Bou's stars, but in the dark his love didn't notice and kept whispering,  
  
"I used to love looking at them when I was younger. But they were prettier before."  
  
They both knew what the 'before' was.  
  
"Yes, Bou-chan." Fugen agreed softly.  
  
For a while, the only noise came from their soft breathing and the crickets.  
  
"I've missed you, Bou-chan." Fugen remarked softly. Bou had been spending more and more time on Earth. Genshitenson had practically given up trying to keep the troublesome doushi on Konron. But Bou always found some way back.  
  
"I'm sorry, Fugen." he apologized meaningfully. And he really was sorry. He knew that his long absences hurt Fugen, but he had to come back. Everyday it seemed as if he was becoming more and more Taikoubou the doushi and losing a little more of who he was before his immortality.  
  
Silence stretched between them for a long time as both were lost in their thoughts until Bou suddenly spoke up again. His voice was a little louder but also a little unsteadier,  
  
"I remember a story from when I was younger."  
  
Fugen stayed silent and waited for Taikoubou to continue,  
  
"There was once a young man. He was tired after a whole day of tending his animals so he went outside to look up at the sky and the stars. In the middle of a meadow with the heavens above him, he drifted to sleep.  
  
But then something woke him up. He opened his eyes and saw a beautiful woman drifting down from the sky. She was an immortal. A goddess.  
  
They met and talked all night. But before dawn, she had to go back to the sky. The man was sad. He had fallen in love. But not just with anyone. He had fallen in love with an immortal goddess. And she loved him too. For a while, they were happy and didn't care about anything else except their love for each other.  
  
But the ruler of the sky found out and didn't approve. An immortal and a human were not allowed to be together. So he made a white river of stars in the sky to keep them apart. One was on one side and the other on the opposite. They thought they would never see each other again."  
  
Bou's voice, which had been steadily lowering in volume faded away and he stopped,  
  
"...that was a sad story." Fugen murmured, now also lying on the ground and curled up next to his lover. Silently, Bou shook his head and Fugen looked up at him questioningly, but Bou shook his head again and curled up too so he faced Fugen. His huge emerald eyes met soft violet ones. They simply gazed at each other, content with just being together.  
  
A while after Fugen had fallen asleep, Bou's eyelids began to flutter and before long he fell asleep too.  
  
As the two slept side by side, the sky steadily lightened until a few hours before dawn when Fugen came awake, shivering from the cold dew seeping through his thin shirt. Sitting up, the sennin brushed Bou's long bangs away from his forehead gently and placed a light kiss on his love's forehead,  
  
"Bou-chan..." Fugen murmured affectionately. Then his expression saddened a little as he asked the question to his sleeping love that he knew not to ask to an awake Bou, "What's the matter?"  
  
With one final soft brush of lips to forehead, Fugen stood and left his now-snoring lover to go back to the floating mountain.  
  
~*~  
  
^_^ 


	2. By the sun

Disclaimer: Not mine.  
  
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Stars  
  
Chapter Two:  
  
By the sun  
  
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"Fugen." It was not a question, simply a statement,  
  
"Yes, Genshitenson-sama?" Fugen replied humbly, staring down at his round paopei cradled in his arms. As soon as he'd returned to Kunlun after his short visit down to Earth, his disciple, Mokutaku, had breathlessly informed him that Genshitenson-sama had requested to see him. It was strange. Why the urgency?  
  
"You and that idiot disciple of mine," Fugen faintly bristled at his lover being dismissed so casually...  
  
"...Fugen Shinjin?"  
  
Fugen started out of his thoughts at Genshitenson's indignant voice. He realized he had not been paying attention to whatever else the man had gone on to talk about,  
  
"My apologies, Genshitenson-sama." he said and earned a glare almost hidden under bushy eyebrows. Clearing his throat, the old sennin repeated what he had said,  
  
"Taikoubou and yourelf have always been...close," he paused for an indication from Fugen, who gave a small nod,  
  
"You were both granted immortality at the same time, and yet," the old sennin's voice began to rise, "you have achieved senninhood while he has not." Fugen nodded again.  
None of it was new to him,  
  
Now Genshitenson's voice lowered almost conspiratorially, "The reason that he has not, is that Taikoubou does not wish to be a sennin. He does not wish to be immortal at all."  
  
This bit of information left Fugen reeling. True, he had known all of it, but he had not known that Genshitenson knew. All he could do was nod numbly, wondering where the talk was going,  
  
"He has been progressing only as much as he wishes to and unfortunately, he does not seem to be improving much as of late." Fugen didn't like the turn the conversation was taking. It didn't sound good for Bou. Finally Genshitenson simply stated what everything else had led up to,  
  
"I am revoking his immortality. He will be sent to live out the rest of his mortal life on Earth."  
  
Taikoubou bit into overly ripe peach and his eyes rolled back in pleasure. He moaned loudly, eliciting a snort from the blue haired sennin sitting nearby.  
  
"Glutton." Youzen commented offhandedly, as he contemplated where to place the small black piece on the crowded board.  
  
Bou didn't bat an eyelid as he sighed contently around another juicy bite. Youzen's opponent shifted awkwardly in his chair as he hurridly placed his white piece and immediately bent to the task of fishing another suitable piece out of the ornately carved bowl.  
  
A smirk crossed Youzen's lips, as he managed to set down his next piece with barely contained glee. Fugen's mind was obviously elsewhere, thought the blue-haired doushi, as he began to pick pieces off the board. Fugen hadn't even noticed.  
  
The angelic sennin startled as Youzen cleared his throat.  
  
"I apologize, I-" he looked down at the board, white playing piece in hand looking for a move, then stopped. A soft 'oh' escaped his lips as he blushed. He'd lost.  
  
Inclining his head graciously to the doushi as acceptance of his defeat, Fugen began to clear his pieces off the board. Youzen began to do the same but the sennin finished first and stood up, signaling that there would be no more games. Slightly disappointed, Youzen murmured his excuses to Taikoubou and Fugen and left them alone, knowing that there was something that was distracting Fugen greatly, if the intelligent sennin had actually lost to him so carelessly.  
  
After Youzen was gone, Fugen sat down on the luxurious window seat that his lover was stretched out on. He had finished the peach and was dozing the alcohol off. Fugen laid down next to his lover, resting his head on Bou's shoulder,  
  
"Bou-chan, wake up." but the sleeping doushi groaned and turned on his side away from Fugen, determined not to wake up.  
  
"Bou-chan," Fugen tried again, and leaning up on an elbow, blew gently into Bou's tanned ear.  
  
Bou jerked awake then and clasped a hand over his ear, glaring indignantly at Fugen, who quickly changed his mischievious grin into his mysterious innocent smile. That only made Bou glare more, but he turned around to look at Fugen,  
  
"What is it?" he whined, blinking sleepily.  
  
"Bou-chan...do you...like being an immortal?"  
  
Bou yawned and let his eyes close again, "Is that what you wanted to ask?" Fugen nodded.  
  
"Sure." Bou replied inconsequently and settled back down into the pillows lining the edges of the window seat. But Fugen wouldn't let the answer rest and pushed at his lover's shoulder until Bou woke up again, sighing. In all the decades that he had been with Fugen, he had learned that the immortal was stubborn as hell and couldn't be dissuaded once he latched onto something. It was easier to just give in to what Fugen wanted.  
  
"We've talked about this," Bou yawned and stretch widely, "it's not that bad; I've gotten used to it."  
  
Fugen's heart sunk. He had always known that Bou disliked being an immortal, but somehow he'd been hoping that had changed since his talk with Genshitenson, over 2 months ago.  
  
"Do you--would you ever--d-do you like being here, like this?"  
  
"Of course I do!" Bou grinned, and wrapped an arm around Fugen's bare shoulders, his fingers pushing the lavender collar down further and he winked cheekily at Fugen, who couldn't help laughing.  
  
"Bou-chan!" he chuckled as he straightened the shirt before sobering, "you know what I mean."  
  
The idiocy receeded from Bou's emerald eyes and they glinted with...something, before he spoke again,  
  
"My feelings haven't changed, Fugen. I don't like it...but it's tolerable." he yawned again, the sleepiness coming back from out of nowhere, "'Sides, you're more important to me than heaven or earth." the last line was said with so much dramatic flair added that Fugen couldn't help but bury his face in Bou's shoulder and laugh.  
  
Immortals who passed the door to the room stopped and stared in alarm as a voice that sounded very much like a gentle, quiet, angelic sennin laughed heartily.  
  
Long after his laughter subsided, Fugen was still nestled next to a napping Bou on the windowseat as the bright oranges, reds, and yellows from the sunset filtered in through the glass. It was Fugen's favorite time of day. The sunset viewed from Kunlun was so short, it lasted barely a few minutes. Hardly enough time to fully soak in the beautiful colors. No one but Fugen knew that Bou's hair, when viewed closely in brilliant last burst of light at sunset, wasn't the even brown tone it looked like during the day, but a multitude of colors. All the chestnuts, the light browns, mahogany, and red-browns were brought out and they shimmered in the light.  
  
But the sunset was over after the few minutes of glorious color and night was rapidly setting in. Fugen sighed and decided to wait just a bit before waking his lover. They were so content and the longer he could hold onto that happiness, the longer he would.  
  
As soon as Genshitenson had talked with him about his plan of renouncing Taikoubou as an immortal, Fugen had rushed down to Earth. The two had spent some time on Earth, but not any longer than Bou's usual stays, so as not to arouse any suspiscion, from both Bou or Genshitenson. They had just gotten back that afternoon and Youzen had stopped him, asking about something or other.  
  
Fugen knew he wouldn't be able to delay any longer. Genshitenson would have a talk with Bou and his lover would be sent back down to Earth to live out the rest of his mortal life there.  
  
The sky outside was dark and the first stars had appeared. Fugen shuddered with the loss of his warm sunshine.  
  
Mortality. Fugen couldn't see why his lover wanted it so much. What good was there to dying? To leaving?  
  
---  
  
Hm, I don't know what the game is called in English, but it was popular in ancient China. Kind of like the equivalent of Chess. (Well, technically Chess originated in China too, but it's a more recognizable comparison) 


	3. Hidden

Disclaimer: Not mine. 

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Stars

Chapter Three:

Hidden

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Fugen woke up later than usual and yawned delicately, a pale hand covering his mouth as he did so. He blinked, sleepy violet eyes opening to search for his lover.

"Good morning, Bou-chan." Fugen yawned again, waiting patiently for his usual morning peck on the cheek before Bou rolled over and fell asleep again. When it didn't come, he opened his eyes, looking around curiously.

"Bou?"

Stretching, the angel sat up, tsking disdainfully at his wrinkled clothes that he'd fallen asleep in.

He looked around for his lover but the rest of the window seat beside him held only beams of light, too bright to be early morning.

Getting up and straightening his clothes as much as he could, Fugen realized with a start that he'd missed the usual early morning gathering of the sennins with Genshitenson at the top of the mountain. Collecting his paopei which was lay at the foot of the window seat, Fugen hurried to Genshitenson's chambers.

He rushed in, shoes quietly tapping on the polished floor and murmured a shame-faced apology to the old god who peered at him ominously from under shadowing eyebrows.

"I'm sorry, Genshitenson-sama," Fugen apologized quietly, bowing his haloed head. "I-I overslept."

A light blush spread over Fugen's pale skin as he admitted to the oversight but Genshitenson stayed silent for so long that he couldn't resist looking up. The older sennin's face was unreadable as always yet something was there in his expression. Something.

"Genshitenson-sama," Fugen suddenly asked, unease building in the pit of his stomach, "Where's Bou-chan?"

The angelic sennin completely forgot himself, revealing the pet name to the old man whose lips curled up the smallest fraction at the corners in a condescending smirk. His eyes which had been covered by bushy eyebrows showed a twinkle that only added to Fugen's unease.

"Why Fugen Shinjin, we discussed this." Fugen hung on to his every word, knowing yet still not allowing himself to believe it, "Taikoubou was cast out of heaven." Fugen froze. "He's no longer immortal," Genshitenson spat, eyes focused on Fugen's paling skin, almost white on his ashen face. "He's to live out the rest of his mortal life on Earth."

Fugen said nothing, completely still and eyes wide open, staring as he tried to comprehend it, what had happened while he slept in. He didn't even get a chance to say good bye.

"And further," Genshitenson continued, showing his sadistic streak much more than he'd ever let it, "the council decided that to prevent this kind of thing from happening again in the future…" Genshitenson practically gloated, "journeys between the heavens and Earth and indefinitely suspended."

A choked cry was Fugen's only sound as he fled Genshitenson's chambers mindlessly, fingers clutching onto his paopei as he ran, as if it was the only thing, the only tangible thing that could keep him grounded after that terrible revelation, that he'd never seen Bou-chan again.

Indefinitely…long years of suffering for an immortal. It would have been bearable if it held the promise of someday seeing Bou again. But his lover was mortal and he'd die long before Fugen ever got the chance to descend to Earth and death would be their final parting, because a heavenly immortal can't descend to the depths of the earth that human spirits went after death. Genshitenson had sealed their fates and he wouldn't even get to say one final good bye to his lover, his love.

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by the way, the game was in fact "Go" or "wei chi" and might I add, a wonderful headache inducer.

3 chapters left! (this is much more a ficlet than a fic...o.o;)


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